War is Hell
by Texan Rebel
Summary: PreAW1. This story follows an OS Marine through the wars. I won't be following the campaigns exactly OK? R&R afterwards! Rated T for violence, alcohol use, and some language. Ch. 7 up!
1. Chapter 1

**War is Hell**

**Summary: Lieutenant Owens of the OSMC saw the war begin in the Alara Mountains shortly before the new CO advisor was initiated into the military. **

**A/N: I am using actual military uniforms, a mix of old and new, for all the armies in the story. Constructive criticism is appreciated, but no flames please. Thank you!**

Lieutenant Don Owens read the 'New Washington Post' at the galley. He did not like the news at all. Not only was the Orange Star having problems with Blue Moon, their next door neighbor, the entire continent was going berserk. Disgusted with the news he put down the front page and pulled out the comics section to sooth his bad mood.

"How's it going Don" asked his friend and fellow officer John Berelsman, commonly known as Johnny B "anything good in the paper today?"

Don smiled at his friend from high school. "Only if you like the usual crap about the whole planet going out of its friggin' mind. Other than that, not much" he said, handing Johnny the front page of the paper.

Johnny took the paper and started to read it as he chowed down on some country style breakfast. Fifteen minutes later, halfway through the paper, Johnny set down his coffee and focused on the morning paper. Don noticed and saw the concerned look on his face. Something was up.

"What's got you now Johnny?" Don asked. Johnny turned the paper around and pointed to an article, unable to talk due to unfinished food in his mouth. He took it and read it aloud. "Huh, 'Green Earth cities attacked by unknown forces. Witnesses say the tanks and infantry look like Orange Star military forces, using the same weapons and equipment as the OS military.' Well that is not good."

Johnny swallowed his mouthful before speaking. "Yeah, I know. First we get into border skirmishes, then things calm down, now Green Earth gets attacked," shaking his head "next to get attacked is probably us."

"Johnny, I wish you didn't say that." Don said, looking through the windows behind his friend, "because that is exactly what I see coming right now. EVERYBODY DOWN!"

The forty plus Marines in the galley did what he said jus before the windows were shattered by machine gun fire. The sound of explosions quickly followed as the land mine defense perimeter was set off by tanks and infantry. The OS Marines grabbed their M-16's, SAWs, M-4's, and M-14's.

Don put on his Kevlar helmet, loaded a magazine and cocked his M-14. He was ready for a fight. Johnny did the same, and opened fire on the brownish green uniforms of the blue moon troops. The Marines, clad in OD green uniforms, started to annihilate the enemy troops.

Don grabbed his bazooka and trained it on a BM tank. "Fire in the hole!" he said just before he fired. Several other rockets followed his, some scoring hits, others missing by only inches.

The Blue Moon troops got smart; they retreated and filed behind the tanks to use as cover. The tanks soon broke through the first line of defenses, and fired on the OS base structures, including the galley.

The wall exploded behind Johnny as he reloaded his M-4, knocking him down. "Corpsman!" he called out. Don saw his comrade was hit, but he had to take care of another trooper he was treating, but saw another Marine crawl toward him and take care of him.

No more than fifteen minutes into the battle, a major fat cowardly called for the men to fall back "Retreat! Retreat! We must retreat!" A Sergeant turned around and grabbed the plump major by the collar and screamed in his face, "Get more men and ammo you pompous bastard! We are not going into a full retreat! Fall back into the kitchen boys!"

The troops agreed the sarge and slowly fell back, taking the dead and wounded with them. Some tipped some tables to use as makeshift bunkers to hide behind as bullets flew. Don did this, dragging a fellow man behind the tables with him to keep them both alive. Soon the galley was empty save some discarded guns, magazines, and empty shell casings.

Thirty more Marines from the other side of the base soon joined the remaining troops with much needed ammo, a few more corpsmen, a few M-60 squads, and two 50 Caliber machine guns! "Thank you God for sending in the cavalry!" one trooper said, "Who needs the army pussies anyways?" another one called out, causing everyone to laugh a little.

A few minutes later, three BM tanks crashed through the walls of the galley with guns blazing. The Marines returned the favor with rockets and heavy machine gun fire, shredding the tanks and crews. The BM troops fired rockets into the galley from behind the tanks and what was left of the walls, killing a handful of Marines. The Marines did the same with some grenades added to the mix, turning the galley into a smoke filled no-mans-land.

Don got a break from the fighting to check on Johnny B. He found him with his head and thighs bandaged and his right arm in a sling. "How ya doin' man? You alright?" he asked.

"I'll be fine. Looks like I get to go home for a little while after this." He returned. He smiled despite the pain. The medics put him on a stretcher to move someplace safer. "We need men to protect the medics as they move wounded! Volunteer?" Don and another six quickly agreed.

After leaving the smoky shooting gallery of a galley, the Marines made sure the medics and patients were safe. They saw that the entire base was fighting desperately to survive, it was awful. They passed a few smoking and burning hulks of what were one Orange Star vehicles and corpses of fellow soldiers. The tanks were only a hundred yards from the bases outer most buildings to defend the base.

The group; six defenders, six corpsmen, and three patients, made it to the designated evacuation point for the wounded. The men and few women there were hurrying to get the wounded into the trucks and APC's. Don stayed long enough to make sure Johnny got into a vehicle before leaving to get back into the combat.

The six Marines, including Don, hitched a ride with some advancing OS Army Anti-Airs and tanks to the front. When they got to the front, the galley was in Blue Moon hands, the OS Marines fell back to the barracks, the third story was a pile of rubble, leaving the second and first able to be occupied, which it was.

Don directed the tanks, "Fire on the galley, the enemy is in there." The tank commander didn't get it, "Galley?" he asked. "The mess hall you idiot!" the Lieutenant barked, rolling his eyes afterwards.

The tanks fired, followed up by the Anti-Airs. A few minutes later, the Blue Moon forces retreated, unable to sustain the attack. The Army units took pursuit with a few Marines catching a ride to chase them down. Victory was Orange Star's.

**What do you think so far? Please send a review, and ideas will be considered.**


	2. Chapter 2

**War is Hell**

**A/N: Constructive criticism is appreciated, but no flames please. Thank you!**

A few hours after the fight, the surviving officers collected at what remained of the movie theater. Only thirty- five officers, some in bandages others not wounded, of the bases original 170 officers were able to attend. The rest were either out on patrol, evacuated, or dead. The head of the Marine officers, Major Alexander Johnson, got the meeting started.

"Settle down guys." He ordered, and the officers obeyed. "Now, what is the situation that we have on our hands, anything?" The officers told the Major all that they knew, form ammunition supplies to what was left of their vehicles. In total, out of the bases original 3800 personnel, there are 917 dead and 1532 wounded and 437 MIA, leaving 914 men able to fight. The BM casualties so far was totaled at 5846 dead, 296 captured, and many more wounded, the rest retreated.

The Major was less than pleased. The situation was much less than admirable. After more than an hour of bickering and discussion, the officers parted with their orders. Two officers did not leave though, 2nd Lieutenant Don Owens, and 2nd Lieutenant Joan Winters; they needed to talk to the major.

The Major noticed that they stayed and gave them an audience. "Lieutenants, what is it?" he asked, a little confused why they stayed.

"Sir, with all due respect, I believe that-", she got a jab in the gut, "I mean we, should move to another area that is in need of reinforcements," Winters started. She just looked to Don as if she was waiting for him to speak.

The major looked in his direction. "I overheard that the Spire hills, Lost Fortress, Coral Lagoon, and several other strategic areas." The major raised an eyebrow. "The army has enough units here to hold the area, but we are useful in other areas. Not a whole a lot of reinforcements are available and all reserves are moving out to other areas, leaving whatever spare units free to provide some relief, am I right?"

The Major, took a few minutes to answer that question. He took long enough that the other two had to take a seat. "I see your point Owens, Winters. However, if I order my troops elsewhere, what would keep the blue bastards from hitting us on the roads?"

Loan spoke up, "We break up the units, sent them in patrol sized groups."

"It would be slower, but it will better guarantee our safety. Plus some detachments could hit convoys of enemy units."

"I like the idea of hitting the enemy convoys, but moving what's left of the troops is a risk I am not willing to take."

"But sir, what about the other bases, they need our help!"

"Do you want them to fall Major, do you?"

"That is enough!" the Major yelled. "I will not move out the Marines unless I get orders from Command. You are dismissed!" The Lieutenants saluted and left the makeshift command center.

The officers headed toward the bar, desperate for a drink. As they had their beers, the two discussed how to get the BM forces back for today. They thought up of every way to do it, from calling HQ to getting a CO to need troops to skirmishing. Nothing seemed to look like a good idea.

"If we can't leave with what is left of our units to attack, what good are we here?" Don asked, frustrated that the Major was as stubborn as he was. He finished his second beer and set the bottle on the table between them.

"I wish that ass would grow some brain cells" she said with some malice. "Even as we speak he Blue Moon are advancing toward the capital. If the Major wants to bee stubborn about it, he'll be indirectly helping the commies." She took a long drink from her beer.

He nodded in agreement. If the capital is lost, then all of the troops would have to surrender. He didn't want to spend the rest of his life in a 'Political Re-education' camp and POW camp.

"Well, we could always shoot him, but we'd be Court Marshaled for it. The again, we could get the others to see our point and leave the Major with the army pukes." He smiled at the idea of leaving the incompetent Major behind, he was probably a career officer anyway.

"I like that idea Lieutenant" a man said in a table next to theirs. The two looked in his direction and saw a few of the other officers, mostly First Lieutenants and Captains. "He just wants to look good for the Brass so he can get his silver oak leaves. He can care less about hitting the enemy, so I think we may be able to help each other out." He and the others smiled at the two.

"What do you mean Captain?" Joan inquired, interested in what he was saying. "Are your troops itching for payback too?"

The Captain finished a glass of what looked like whisky, and spoke again. "Not so much an itch, as a blood lust. My tank battalion is down to three platoons from ten. We want blood."

The other officers; anti-aircraft, recon, artillery, infantry, and other specialties, agreed with nods or a few words. I seemed like the feelings were mutual among the Marine officers and their NCOs.

"If we do that, we would wind up in a huge world of shit." Don noted, getting the attention of the others in the conversation. "Even if we can skirmish the enemy, we have to deal with the Major and high command after we get to another base."

"Easy. I got connections with a few of the Top Brass." The Captain said with a grin on his face. "I can get us out of here in about 48 hours."

* * *

Now on the way to Lost Fortress, Don and about 300 other Marines and their equipment; which included two tank platoons, one Anti-Air platoons, three recon platoons, one artillery platoon, six APCs, and thirteen GMC 6x6 trucks loaded with men and equipment. The Captain delivered in 39 hours, sooner than expected.

Don decided to find out where they were stopping that day, so he asked the gunner on the gun mount in the cab to find out for him. The gunner came back a few seconds later and told him. "We're going to a place called, uh, Promise Hill" the gunner yelled over the roar of diesel engines.

"Where is that Corporal?"

"Someplace that has been bypassed by the commies. It might give us a good place or make hit and runs on them."

"Are there any our forces there currently?"

"I'll have to find out from Captain Miller, sir. Hold on."

"Don't bother. I'll find out when we get there. Thanks."

"Sure thing Lieutenant."

He moved into the most comfortable position he could in the corner of the 6x6 by the cab to get some sleep, which is not an easy task in a truck driving on dirt roads in a forest. As he started to drift off, he wondered what the Captain had happen to Major 'Pain-in-the-ass' Johnson. He figured the guy got a crappy pencil-pushing job.

Tired from the past few days of combat, patrols, planning and preparation for the trip out of there, Don slid into a light sleep that he desperately needed.

**In this story, one platoon of vehicles is one unit in the game, but not for infantry forces. That's it for now, I'll add another chapter later. R&R please!**


	3. Chapter 3

**War is Hell**

**A/N: Here is chapter 3 of my story! **

**Disclaimer: Oh, I forgot this last time. I do not, nor will I ever, own the rights to the AW series. I only own my what I make up in this fic.**

The Marines waited in the foliage on both sides of the highway, waiting for the BM forces to roll by. The entire unit was in ambush position. The Marines had left Promise Hill two days ago and ran into the enemies main supply artery. Being the opportunists that they were, the troops set up to hit the enemy supply convoys and reinforcements.

Don and his Mech's waited with their bazookas set. They only had to wait for the first shots to be fired by the artillery. For the sake of mobility they left their ruck sacks with the trucks and APCs in case they needed to move fast.

He looked at his watch for the twentieth time in the last half-hour. Looking over First Sergeant Josh Tatum, his squads XO, he saw that he too was getting impatient. The other three in his squad, Private Alex Pettigrew, Corporal Cameron Smith, and PFC Mark Sirman, were also getting the itch to let loose. It would have helped if the convoy was not late.

Pettigrew leaned up against a tree and pulled out a deck of cards. In less than one minute the three lowest ranking squad members were playing Texas Hold 'em. The Sergeant was about to break it up, but Don stopped him. Tatum looked at him confused, and then understood a few seconds later; let them relax a little or the waiting will drive them crazy.

Don signaled him to keep listening for enemy trucks or armor units. The Sergeant obeyed, and took the position where the squad SAW was located to keep an eye on the road. While the Sergeant was keeping look-out, Don pulled out a worn blue leather covered Bible and opened it to the Book of Psalms.

Another two hours and four watch rotations later, the Marines heard the faint roar of tanks diesel engines. Don put away his Bible, his men collected the cards and all got into position along with the rest of the troops. Don grabbed his bazooka and set his M-4 right next to him to switch out quickly like the others were doing. He missed the M-14, but they were all being modified for snipers, so he got an adequate replacement.

A few minutes later the first Blue Moon unit came into view. In the lead was a medium tank, followed by several others! Following up were regular tanks, APC's, several rockets and artilleries, Anti-Airs, plus recons and truck of men and supplies, the perfect targets for the Marines to hit.

The Marines were severely outnumbered, but had the better position and surprise on their side. Only one-hundred yards away, the Don and the other Marines lead the enemy vehicles with their bazookas and rifles. All the troops were scared; they were going up against mediums!

Don trained on a regular tank, sweat collecting on his palms. He forced himself not to squeeze the trigger. Putting his worries aside for the moment, he focused doen the scope toward his target, waiting to fire.

A thunder was heard, causing the BM commanders in the tank turrets to look around confused. A few second later, the lead medium tanks were destroyed and several others damaged. The Marines Fired three seconds after the shells impacted, unleashing a hail of rockets and bullets.

The OS tanks, located right behind the infantry, fired with their cannons and 50 caliber guns. The BM forces, caught in total surprise, dispersed from the road to find cover. The enemy tanks and Anti-Airs rotated their turrets to either side of the highway and blindly fired into the woods.

The Infantry jumped from the trucks and APC's that were not hit and moved towards the woods, supported by recons, with RPG's and Bullets flying. They got about twenty yards in before they got pinned down. Despite the fact that they were pinned down with artillery and heavy fire raining down on them, they fought on.

Don loaded another rocket into his bazooka and aimed at a recon, but noticed that the indirect-combat units were setting up on the road. Grabbing a radio he switched to the artillery frequency. "Hell Guns, Hell Guns, enemy artillery setting up on highway. Location is mile marker two-one-zero, use HE rounds only!"

"Roger that, we see them. Keep your pants on!" The operator on the other side said back. Setting the radio aside, Don lined up his bazooka with an artillery unit and fired. He figured he hit the magazine when it literally disintegrated into a ball of smoke and fire.

The enemy tanks moved behind the wreckage of their fallen vehicles, trying to survive as long as possible. The rocket units, vulnerable and useless in the situation, were abandoned by their crews and left to their fate. The medium tanks that remained led the charges straight for the OS position, encountering heavy resistance.

One medium tank headed straight for Don's squad position. Private Pettigrew saw it, and fired madly at it with the SAW, giving away their position. Smith saw the turret point straight at them and yelled to the others, "Incoming! Move it!" The other members of the squad saw it, and tried to scatter.

The tank fired, obliterating the position. Don was knocked off his feet from the shock of the shell impacting. He looked back towards it and saw three bloodied corpses that were once his men. Pettigrew, Sirman, and Tatum were dead, and Don was too shocked to move. Smith ran over to him and shook him out of his shock and pulled him behind a thick tree.

"Sir, are you alright?" the Corporal questioned, worry in his voice.

"Yeah, I'll be…alright in a sec."

Smith just nodded, and got into firing position. Don followed suit a few seconds later. The medium tank was still coming towards their tanks that fell back to seek better cover. Don noticed his bazooka only a few feet away and formulated a plan to stop the enemy behemoth. He pulled Smith behind the tree to tell him his plan.

"Corporal, I know how we can stop that monster!"

"How?"

The Lieutenant showed him where the bazooka was on the ground. "If we can get behind it and hit the engine block we can stop it."

"We'll need two rockets! And even if we did, we'd only have one shot at it!"

"One shot is all we need. Where's your bazooka?"

The corporal looked around, and saw it in a bush a little farther than the Lieutenants. "I see it in the bushes."

The tow men sprinted for their bazookas and got them before they were noticed. The men then swept around the enemy tank and the men following it. Behind a fallen tree, they waited for the right shot.

"Ready Corporal?"

"Let's finish this!"

The tank was thirty yards away. Smith fired first, blowing off the cover to the engine block, followed by Owens' rocket to the engine, immobilizing the tank. The infantry behind the tank that were not wounded by shrapnel peppered the twos position.

Discarding the bazookas, they used grenades to eliminate the troops. The enemy was rushing their position until they were cut down by an Anti-Air. Smith and Owens plus a few other Marines charged the wounded tank.

Climbing to the top, the Marines started to pry at the top hatch that a BM tanker tried to close when he saw them. One Marine put the barrel of his gun in the space between the hatch and turret and let loose a full automatic spray. The hatch was pried open enough that they threw a few grenades into the tanks. They heard muffled screams before the grenades killed the crew.

Looking around the battlefield, the Lieutenant and other Marines saw the remaining enemy troops surrender. For two bloody hours of hard combat, the enemy was finally routed.

One Marine came up to the Lieutenant and started to chat. "Not bad for a days work, eh?" the Marine asked while lighting up a cigarette.

He looked at the young Marine, and saw Privates striped on his collar. He looked away, his face emotionless. "If you think this is a game or an adventure, you're going to be in for one hell of a wake up call."

"What do you mean, sir?" The Private was a fresh recruit, just like he thought.

"Tell me what you see Private."

Confused, he told him what he saw. After the Private finished, Don gave him a view of what he saw, causing the half burned cigarette to fall from the Privates mouth in shock. The lieutenant finished his explanation with one last sentence, in an emotionless and monotone voice, "I'll say it only once, so listen well. War, is hell!"

**A/N: Please tell me your opinion. Oh, if you are going to flame, then please do me a favor and don't waste my time!**


	4. Chapter 4

**War is Hell**

**Disclaimer: I do not and most likely never will own anything (other than a copy of the games) that has to do with AW. Yeah.**

**A/N: Well here is chapter four, five is in the works. Just read it.**

The Marines drove on toward the Lost Fortress. After annihilating all of the enemy vehicles, they took the surviving enemy troops with them; it just didn't feel right to leave them to die in the woods . Some of the BM troops were no younger than 17 years old, not even high school graduates, just farm boys.

Owens and Smith kept an eye on one truck full of enemy prisoners, thirteen men. None of them wanted to get in trouble; one tried to escape earlier that day and was shot after resisting recapture. They shot him in front of all the other POW's as a warning. To ensure that the Russians kept civilized, The Lieutenant and Corporal gave them the cigarettes that came in the rations; the two didn't smoke.

The Russians, who were most grateful for the smokes, started a friendly conversation with the Marines, calling them 'gracious Americans'. While they were in conversation, Don decided to get some information from a Russian Sergeant. "Hey, Ivan, where were you guys heading before we jumped you."

The BM soldier looked at him. He had no injuries but his uniform was covered in dirt. "To Mechanicsburg, we were to meet up with the main units pushing forward." He said in perfect English with a heavy accent while lighting another cigarette.

"What else? There had to of been other targets beside the major production sites, right?"

"Honestly, I don't know," Ivan said, taking another drag "damn this is good. May I have another for later?"

Don dug into his pockets for another pack, but Cameron beat him to it and handed over the whole pack. "Don't use 'em all at once."

The Sergeant laughed at the joke. After a few more cancer sticks, he told the two that he was willing to divulge all the information that he knew, in exchange for political asylum after the war for him and his men. The Marines said that they'll do what they could for them but better tell the interrogator just to be safe.

After a few more hours of traveling, the convoy of Marines stopped to spend the night. Owens and Smith decided to see the units temporary CO about what they know. They found the command APC near the thickest part of the woods.

The two were stopped by one of the few Army Spec. Ops. Soldiers outside of the rear hatch. "What can I do for you gentlemen?" he asked, finger on the trigger.

"We have some information that we think the commander might find useful" Don answered. The soldier told them to wait while he told the commander, his partner keeping an eye on them.

A moment later the trooper returned. "Go in, sir. She'll see you now."

The men stepped into the APC. The best infantry and transport in the Orange Star Army was waiting for them, Major Sami Nishimura. She was only about three years older than the Lieutenant, served just as long, one year, but skipped three ranks and received that position because she had CO Powers.

"Well boys, what is so important?" she asked in a conversational tone. This caught the two Marines off guard, not used to that sort of tone from the CO.

The Lieutenant stuffed his discomfort before speaking. "Ma'am, a Blue Moon soldier, a Sergeant, has told us he has important info for us."

"Really, what's the catch?"

"He wants to stay in Orange Star after the war. He hates the political system down there."

Sami took a moment to decide on what to do. "Bring him here; I want to speak with him."

Don nodded to Cameron, and he wordlessly followed his orders. Don took a seat and decided to get some answers about some things on his mind. "Permission to speak freely, ma'am?"

"Go ahead lieutenant." she returned, pouring herself something to drink.

"Why is an army officer in charge of a Marine detachment? It just doesn't add up right in my mind."

Sami looked at him like that was one of the strangest questions to ask. "Well, if you really want to know, Nell told me to take charge of you guys."

"Nell? As in Supreme Commanding General Nell Chernekove?" he asked a little Confused. Only she a few other members of the Joint Chiefs could do that, and only in desperate situations. "That figures."

"You got something against her soldier?"

"No. It's just Marine Corps pride. We hold ourselves at such a regard that that if we're not commanded by a fellow Marine, it's not thought of too highly by the rest. You understand my point of view?"

"Not too well. But I get the idea."

The Corporal returned with the POW right there. The conversation ended right there before more could be said. The interrogation started a few minutes later after introductions were mad, with the Russian telling all that he knew; troop movements, supply depots, supply lines, unit strengths, and targets. One of the targets, and where the largest drive was heading, was the capital, New Washington.

By the time the interrogation ended, it was 0230 hours. Sami issued some new orders after the POW was returned to his comrades. She gave the orders to the officers that collected, move out shortly before the sun was to rise.

"What are we going for so damn early in the frickin' morning for?" a tank officer blurted out. When he noticed the looks of annoyance and irritation on the others faces, he meekly replied, "Sorry".

"To answer his question," Sami started, "we're dropping off our prisoners and going after Olaf's main forces. We got to stop his forces or delay them long enough to allow Washington to evacuate and prepare for battle. Move OUT!"

"Yes Ma'am!"

**Ok, I know this was not as good or as long as the others, but that's how it goes. Better stuff in the following chapter, I promise you that. Now, send a review please.**


	5. Chapter 5

**War is Hell**

**Sorry for the wait, I had... other bussiness. Well, have at it!**

Three weeks passed as the Marine detachment attacked and confused Olaf's troops. The Marines eventually got reassigned to guard the industrial center of Johannesburg, the city where Medium Tank R&D and testing was taking place, roughly seventy miles south of New Washington. The Marines were also reorganized into a larger unit. All officers became platoon commanders or higher in the Chain of Command.

Lieutenant Don Owens walked down the trench line set up three miles from the outskirts of Johannesburg, now the XO of a platoon. The complete unit designation that he was now part of was the 13th Marine Regiment 7th Battalion Hotel Company 3rd Platoon.

His commander was Captain Al Lee, a veteran from the war that followed the split of the country. When the Marines were reorganized, his squad member, Corporal Cameron Smith, was promoted to Sergeant and made the first squad leader, with eleven men under his command. Three other Sergeants were in charge of the other squads but he was still learning names, and the men.

As he reviewed the platoon, he remembered when the war started for them. It was unfortunate that when he and the other troops were moving out that they had to make units smaller than standard, such as five man squads; that was actually the size of a Fire Team, not a squad.

Most of the Marines under him now were new, the other officers, NCOs, and a few others were veterans of the first few weeks. The new guys seemed like most every other FNG, excited to be away from home and at the front for adventure. They'll get a rude awakening real soon, he knew.

Don came to the forward command bunker to get the intelligence report. The bunker was a swirl of commotion; weather reports coming in, orders getting tossed around, and troop movements being mapped on the table in the center.

"Colonel I am getting reports of a snow storm coming in. ETA is three days."

"Satellites show enemy forces will be here in two days."

"Enemy strength"

"I'm seeing seventeen regular armor divisions, eight Medium armor divisions, twelve AA divisions, five artillery battalions, two rocket battalions, and about fifty plus regular and mechanized infantry divisions."

"The number, what's the number of units?"

'That entire force, if you add resonances units plus their supply units… About roughly two-hundred-thousand against our fifteen-thousand, maybe more sir"

Don was shocked at those odds. That roughly came out to a 13-to-1 Russian to American ratio, not favorable at all. Even if they could hold against the initial attack, there would be much hell to pay for. The Colonel called for all officers over to him by the war board for planning the battle ahead.

* * *

The Marines were nervous, very nervous. Don had to tell several of his men to just relax and breathe deeply. He had them prepare for winter weather and fix bayonets for the battle that will start in the next two hours. Even the ten-thousand reinforcements that came did not eas the minds of his men. 

Men, more like boys; more than half the troops could not legally drink, yet were entrusted with a rifle, grenades, bazookas, and other weapons of war and the defense of their homeland. These boys were going to be hard to handle for the first few battles, but a little experience will turn them into professionals.

Don went over his equipment as he checked his troops. He checked his grenade pins, number of magazines, field knife, pistol, bayonet, and rifle. The Lieutenant would have loved to of had his bazooka, but due to the current situation he was no longer allowed one. 'Oh well, make due with what you got.'

The second squad leader, Sergeant Johnson, motioned him over. Owens went over to see what was bugging his squad leader.

"Sir, what are the chances of us coming out of this alright?" the Sergeant asked him.

This was not a good sign, one of the veterans starting to chicken out on them. 'Better boost his morale'. "Very high if we keep to our training. If you have to, take a few deep breathes and get a drink of water, you look like you need it."

"Yes sir, I'll do that. Do you want me to tell my squad sir?"

"Do that, and also tell them to shoot in bursts or in semi-auto. Full auto is a waste of ammo; we must make every shot count."

"Yes sir"

His CO was waiting for him down the way in the trench. He handed the XO a cup of some steaming liquid. "One cup of Lipton tea with honey right" Owens took it and nodded yes to his question. "Why don't you drink coffee? It would make my life lot easier."

"Oh come on Al, what's life without a few challenges?" He joked as he drank his tea.

Al deflated at the joke. "You just had to drink tea, not coffee, tea."

A whistling sound was soon heard in the air. Nobody was alowed to make any unnecessary noise in the trench, so that meant- "INCOMING!" someone screamed.

Both officers dropped to the floor of the trench. Don forgot about his spilt tea and both men went into combat mode, shouting orders over the deafening sounds. "Keep in the trench; you are safer in the trench than out in the open!" "Check your rifle safeties; I don't want misfires!" "Don't chicken out on me; you do, you're a dead man!"

Don checked the radio traffic to find out why the shooting started sooner than expected while the CO went down the like to be sure nothing bad happened to the troops morale. A few minutes later, Don came running towards him with the news. "Sir, they think it's the Sandusky's Sentinels! Grit's boys are on those guns!"

The CO cursed them, because they could literally blow away the competition before the main driving forces came in. Another report soon came in that counter battery fire was impossible, and for all units to fall back to the secondary position. They fell back, with all of their dead, wounded, and equipment, to the second line of defense in the woods a quarter mile back.

Don looked over the lip of the trench as the men fell back. He saw Blue Moon units coming to finish off the first line of defenders. He knew however, that they would be hitting mines and be within rocket and artillery range; they won't finish his comrades off that easily.

Just as the Lieutenant expected, as soon as the enemy was in range, every available artillery piece, including mortars, were raining down on the enemy. He felt pity for them, knowing the fate that they were heading towards. Don excused the feeling and helped another Marine towards the next line through the blood drenched mud.

It was several minutes before all of the troops made it to the line, but every one of them was accounted for; even the dead. The men either helped the wounded or fought the oncoming enemy unit. The seriously wounded were the first to get moved, soon to be followed by less serious injuries and the dead. Navy Priests gave last rights to the dead and give confession to the dying.

Don fought with what he had. He did what he was trained to do, ensure the men are doing their jobs and taking a few shots at the enemy now and then. He looked toward the enemy again, and saw that they were now crossing the trench that was recently vacated. Thankfully the number of enemy tanks and infantry was less than before, but still enough to pose a serious threat.

He looked for the box that held the detonator to the empty trench and retreat trenches. He found a dark skinned Sergeant with the plunger waiting for the right moment to set off the fireworks. Don ran to him.

"Wait for my order Sergeant!" Don said over the din of battle.

The Sergeant saw him and acknowledged him, "Just tell me when they are full sir!"

They both saw the tanks pass the trench, "Not yet", and then the infantry started to pile into it, "Not yet", then more infantry, "A little more". Machine gun fire splattered around the Lieutenants head and he fell down to hide form the fire. His eyes burned and he hit the ground. "Blow it now!" He screamed.

He heard the explosion as the trench was destroyed, along with the cries of the unfortunate guys that were caught in it. The Lieutenants eyes were cleared of dirt and filth a few seconds later and he saw the damage. Hardly anything was left, only wreckage, bodies, and retreating troops.

A transmission was soon heard on all allied ground channels, "Get out there and bring back some prisoners, and I want as many as possible!" said Sami.

"You heard her boys, let's go! Any Corpsman that is not busy is with me. Move" The Lieutenant broadcasted. He climbed out of the trench with several more following him. He kept his finger on the trigger... Just in case.

**I know that was short, but that is what there is. R&R please!**


	6. Chapter 6

**War is Hell**

**I know this took a while, but I got a life too you know. It may be a while before I add another chapter, but the wait will be well worth it.**

**Usual disclaimer, I don't anything except a copy of the games. Damn.**

Ten days had passed as the battle for the city continued. The head honchos got their hands on several experimental Medium tank platoons out of disparity and the researcher's need for a battlefield test. Despite the snowfall, the tanks worked well but still had a lot of bugs to iron out.

From the fields to the city, the battle raged. The two opposing forces fought for every street and block for dominance. With Grit's best men, the indirect-fire combatants, unable to provide adequate fire support, the Orange Star forces started to inflict heavy casualties.

Lieutenant Owens looked through the scope mounted on his M-4. He kept the crosshairs on an observation post that the enemy set up. He double checked his calculation that he had written down.

_Range: 264 m; wind+1 clicks left; elevation: -1 clicks down._

He made the adjustments to the scope and readied to shoot. Finding his target, a radioman, he waited for the most opportune moment. The enemy sat himself down in front of his consol and started to work. Bingo.

Lieutenant Owens ran on autopilot as he went through the movements. Set crosshairs above target, inhale fully, let it out slowly, and squeeze trigger slowly as the crosshairs fall on target- 'POW!'

He counted the seconds, one, two- blood splattered on the wall next to his target, from the neck. The unfortunate SOB was going to choke on his own blood.

He looked for other targets, but they had hid behind whatever cover that there was. Looking closer he saw a soldier braving sniper fire and look for him. One shot ended his search, at the cost of his life. Again he looked, and this time saw what looked like a limb, so he shot at it. He thought right, blood sprayed and another trooper was hit, in the arm.

Now all he had to worry about was a counter attack. With the initial damage done, the enemy probably figured out the general area he fired from. Don planned to get out of there before hell unleashed it's furry.

The Lieutenant picked up his rifle and ran away from his target to another ruined structure to snipe again. He checked the sky for any unfriendly helicopters before moving out into the open. Thankfully he saw none.

He sprinted across the ruined block of what was once a strip mall. He only got three-fourths of the way across before snow shot up at his feet. Finding cover he quickly pulled his shaving mirror out of his pocket. He raised it just enough to see over the slab of concrete protecting him from 7.62x39 mm rounds.

First he checked the left using the mirror; there was nothing that he could see that looked like prime sniping spots. When he looked at the right side, he saw a flash, and then his mirror was shattered in his hand followed a second later by the sound of the rifle.

He guessed that his guy is probably about 150 meters away from him, and he has a spotter. Damn, he was target practice if he ran, and his armor was non-existent. The structure he was heading for was probably another 40 meters away, so he stood somewhat of a chance.

Don had to decide, wait here and be captured by pursuing troops, or run and take the risk of getting shot and killed by one of the best trained snipers in the world. He took the latter. He burst for the building at full sprint, with snow going up around him. He counted the shots as he ran, and he figured if the guy has a standard 10 round magazine, he was running short on ammo.

He was only one meter from safety when bullet number ten got him. "Ah shit!" he yelled as he fell to the floor in pain and exhaustion from getting off of his adrenaline high. "That (pant)… was not (pant, pant)… fun."

He put his hand on the area that took the bullet, his right shoulder blade. He pulled back at the pain, and his fingers had blood on them. He moved his arm to test mobility, and figured it just took off some skin, only a flesh wound.

He stood up and looked behind. He paled at what he saw. The Russians didn't just send a platoon to kill him, they sent Anti-Air tanks too! "Oh… SHIT!" The Lieutenant sprinted like the Devil himself was right behind him. What a hell of was to die.

Owens ran for all he was worth, knowing that he had to either find a good hiding spot or run into some friendly units or he was toast. Bullets were soon kicking up dirt and bits of debris all around him, several coming close to hitting him.

He managed to run into a half collapsed parking garage and ran for the damaged part. Quickly checking his surroundings, he saw that he found the perfect place to make his last stand, and found cover behind some concrete and rebar that led to the next level.

Don did not have to wait long for a target to appear. The infantry always comes in first. He set the selector on AUTO for this fight. The soldiers bunched up against the pillars, making them prim targets for bursts. He let loose the hail of hot lead, taking the entire enemy platoon by surprise and killing several.

Letting out two more bursts, he slung his rifle over his shoulder and climbed as quickly as possible to the next level of the lot, bullets pelting the area around him. He turned around and primed a grenade, waiting or the Russians to collect below him. A bullet grazing his face from below took the Lieutenant by surprise, causing him to instinctively pull away, and drop the live grenade.

He clamped his hand over the left side of his face, blood pooling at his eye socket. In a second he remembered the grenade, and watched in slow motion as it rolled toward where he climbed up from and settle between some rebar. He dove away from the grenade just as it blew. The sounds of explosions, screeching metal and human screams filled his ears in an awful tune of death.

Wasting no time, Don got up and moved somewhere, anywhere, away from the enemy with fear taking control of him. The roar of tank engines echoed throughout the parking lot. As they got closer, like a predator hunting its prey, he looked for anything that would help him stop the tanks.

He almost ran headlong into an AA tank as it came up the ramp. Like a deer in the headlights, he froze, and so did the tank. Don was raising his hands in defeat, and then saw the tank fall with the ramp back down to the first level, metal screeching and concrete crumbling with it. Thoroughly surprised, he just stood there in shock of what happened; the damaged ramp just could not hold the heavy hunk of junk.

A tank shell going off downstairs snapped him out of his stupor and go back to what he was doing earlier, finding cover. He heard gunfire, explosions, and screams that sounded like a full tank and infantry battle, got him wondering what the hell was going on down stairs.

Curiosity got the best of him. Flying down the first flight of stairs down, he saw Orange Star Medium Tanks fighting the Blue Moon units. The firepower that the allied mediums possessed was not as much as the Russian counterparts, but it was more than enough for this battle.

A stray bullet caught Don in the right thigh and he quickly got behind the concrete barrier. He pulled out his poor excuse of a med kit and started to patch himself up as much as possible, starting with his leg. After wrapping a bandage around it and stopping the bleeding he put his camouflage pattern bandana around his head to keep the grazing from getting worse.

The battle sounds died down. With his most serious wounds taken care of, he pulled out his .45 and started for the nearest allied tank. The commander of the tank saw him and quickly got out to help him. "You alright soldier?" he asked over the roar of the engines.

"I'll be doing better if you can get me to an aid station" The Lieutenant answered. The tank officer helped him onto the tank. "I'll take the second hatch and man the gun, OK?" The tanker agreed, happy to get out of the line of fire. Things were sure looking up, all things considered.

With the fight wrapped up, the tanks headed back to base, with one passenger.

**Tell me what you think of this latest instalment, and please be kind in your reviws.**


	7. Chapter 7

**War is Hell**

**A little late, but better than never. **

Don woke up in throbbing pain. He quickly found out that he could only look through his right eye, and then the memory of the grazing shot flashed in his mind. Looking around, he found himself in a field hospital located somewhere safe behind allied lines. He also noticed that he was in a hospital gown, his leg patched up, and a bandage around his stomach and right shoulder.

"So, your up" a female voice said. Don looked to his left and saw an Army nurse. "You've been out for about twelve hours now."

"That long?" He asked. The nurse nodded. "How did I get this wounds?" pointing to his stomach and shoulder.

"Well, the soldiers that brought you in said that you took some shrapnel from the enemy tank shells. The one you were on flipped on its side and you were thrown off, and landed on your shoulder" she told him.

"I see. Thank you for telling me."

"No problem. If you need one of us, just let us know"

'So, we were hit by an armor ambush' Owens thought to himself, 'heck, I just glad to be alive right now.'

"Long time no see buddy" a familiar voice said.

Don looked at where the voice came from. "Johnny B! Good to see ya man!"

The two comrades shook hands. "It's been, what, two months?"

Don laughed, "I lost track after I was sent to the front."

"Don't you mean, how was it put, 'negotiated' your way to the front?"

"You got me," raising his hands in defeat, "several other officers also had a hand in it though."

"I thought so." Berelsman answered. "I also heard that you'll keep your eye and get out in about five days."

Owens sighed in relief, "Thank God the medicine works a lot faster and better than it did before, back on Earth."

A slight grimace crossed his friends face, "Yeah, I remember. I miss it you know, I really do."

"Too bad we had to leave it. But, at least we still have our comrades and a place to call home."

"Some of them anyway" Johnny B said with trails of sorrow in his voice. The sound of approaching footsteps caught the attention of both Lieutenants. Johnny went to the position of attention when he saw that Nell was approaching, with what looked like a few officer trainees.

"At ease Marines," Nell said, turning her attention to the officer in bed. "I heard a report of you fighting by yourself after getting separated from your unit, is this true?"

Owens gulped whatever moisture was in his mouth before speaking. "That is true ma'am."

Her expression lightened up a little. "It's good to see that you made it out alive, despite the horrible conditions," her face hardened, "but it was very reckless of you to do that! You were almost killed and we'd have lost a perfectly good officer!"

Don quickly tried to defend himself. "With all due respect ma'am, I was cut off and had no other choice if I wanted to stay alive! I also managed to cause them grief by sniping them in their own territory!"

"That was one reason I sent those tanks out, to retrieve you. Unfortunately they were lost as a result. Did you find anything worth noting or were they wasted?"

Don looked over to the trainees, young guys still in the academy probably, then back to Nell. "Yes, I did." Nell, Johnny and the cadets looked at him expectantly. "While fighting them I overheard something about sending forces somewhere near Pointing River and the Switchback Pass. That was it."

She took a moment to process the info that she was just given as if calculating possible forces that they may be gathering and what could happen if they advanced from those locations. "Thank you Lieutenant. Now for the other reason I was here."

Both Lieutenants looked at here with interest. "What would that be?" Berelsman asked.

Nell smiled as a cadet handed her a small box. "Second Lieutenant Robert Owens, for exceptional bravery and actions in the face of danger, the nation of Orange Star presents to you the Bronze Star. And for receiving wounds in action, you are hereby awarded the Order of the Purple Heart."

Everyone within visual rang clapped as Nell pinned the medals on his pillow. He shook her hand, smiled for the picture, and looked at the Bronze Star in disbelief. 'I rated a Bronze Star. My parents would be proud of me' he thought to himself. He faced her again and gave a crisp salute, "Thank you ma'am."

"You're welcome Lieutenant, and congratulations." Nell returned the salute, and went along her way to continue awarding medals and thanking soldiers for their service and sacrifice.

It was not long before his commander, Sami, came up to him. "I'm glad to see you made it out of there" she said with her arms crossed and a stern look on her face.

"Are you also going to chew me out?" he asked, sounding deflated. To his surprise she shook her head.

"No, but I should be. Your actions almost got you killed, but it also got you a transfer to Force Recon."

"WHAT?" Johnny and Don both said at the same time, completely caught by surprise by the news.

"Keep it down will you, we're trying to rest" some trooper announced.

"Sorry."

"Anyway, as soon as you're out of here, you'll meet up with the 4/13 at Fort Maxwell in Rallast. Here are all of your paperwork, and good luck." With that she gave him a quick salute and left.

Johnny looked at his friend with some expectancy. Don returned his look before opening his new orders. "I move out the day I book from here."

**Future updates will be far and few for the next few months, possiblly years. Anyways, please R&R! **


End file.
